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Randomized Controlled Trial
. 2023 Aug 27;15(17):3747.
doi: 10.3390/nu15173747.

Consumption of Different Egg-Based Diets Alters Clinical Metabolic and Hematological Parameters in Young, Healthy Men and Women

Affiliations
Randomized Controlled Trial

Consumption of Different Egg-Based Diets Alters Clinical Metabolic and Hematological Parameters in Young, Healthy Men and Women

Catherine J Andersen et al. Nutrients. .

Abstract

Eggs-particularly egg yolks-are a rich source of bioactive nutrients and dietary compounds that influence metabolic health, lipid metabolism, immune function, and hematopoiesis. We investigated the effects of consuming an egg-free diet, three egg whites per day, and three whole eggs per day for 4 weeks on comprehensive clinical metabolic, immune, and hematologic profiles in young, healthy adults (18-35 y, BMI < 30 kg/m2 or <30% body fat for men and <40% body fat for women, n = 26) in a 16-week randomized, crossover intervention trial. We observed that average daily macro- and micronutrient intake significantly differed across egg diet periods, including greater intake of choline during the whole egg diet period, which corresponded to increased serum choline and betaine without altering trimethylamine N-oxide. Egg white and whole egg intake increased serum isoleucine while whole egg intake reduced serum glycine-markers of increased and decreased risk of insulin resistance, respectively-without altering other markers of glucose sensitivity or inflammation. Whole egg intake increased a subset of large HDL particles (H6P, 10.8 nm) and decreased the total cholesterol:HDL-cholesterol ratio and % monocytes in female participants using combined oral contraceptive (COC) medication (n = 11) as compared to female non-users (n = 10). Whole egg intake further increased blood hematocrit whereas egg white and whole egg intake reduced blood platelet counts. Changes in clinical immune cell counts between egg white and whole egg diet periods were negatively correlated with several HDL parameters yet positively correlated with measures of triglyceride-rich lipoproteins and insulin sensitivity. Overall, the intake of whole eggs led to greater overall improvements in micronutrient diet quality, choline status, and HDL and hematologic profiles while minimally-yet potentially less adversely-affecting markers of insulin resistance as compared to egg whites.

Keywords: body composition; clinical immune profiles; combined oral contraceptives; diet composition; eggs; insulin sensitivity; lipoprotein profiles; metabolic panel; serum lipids.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Diagram of study design and subject recruitment, enrollment, and completion.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Serum lipid responses to egg intake are altered in females based on used of combined oral contraceptives. Intake of an egg-free diet (light blue), egg whites (purple), or whole eggs (dark blue) did not alter serum (A) total cholesterol, (B) LDL-C, (C) non-HDL-C, (D) triglycerides, (E) total cholesterol:HDL-C ratio, or (F) HDL-C in young healthy men and women (n = 26). In female participants, changes in the total cholesterol:HDL-C ratio (G) and (H) HDL-C between the egg white and whole diet periods were evaluated in COC users (teal bar, n = 11) as compared to non-users (gray bar, n = 10). * p < 0.05, NS: non-significant.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Effects of egg intake on serum lipoprotein profiles. Intake of an egg-free diet (light blue), egg whites (purple), or whole eggs (dark blue) on (A) HDL particle subclasses (n = 25); (B) changes in large LDL concentrations between the egg white and whole diet periods in female COC users (teal bar, n = 11) as compared to non-users (gray bar, n = 9). * p < 0.05. Different letters (a, b) denote statistically significant comparisons.
Figure 4
Figure 4
Effects of egg intake on clinical immune profiles with COC use. Changes (A) total WBC; (B) absolute neutrophils; and (C) % monocytes between the egg white and whole diet periods in female COC users (teal bar, n = 10) as compared to non-users (gray bar, n = 7). * p < 0.05, NS: non-significant.
Figure 5
Figure 5
Effects of egg intake on clinical erythrocyte and platelet profiles. Intake of an egg-free diet (light blue), egg whites (purple), or whole eggs (dark blue) on (A) total red blood cells; (B) hemoglobin; (C) hematocrit; (D) mean corpuscular volume; (E) mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentrations; and (F) total platelets (n = 23). Different letters (a, b) denote statistically significant comparisons. * p < 0.05, NS: non-significant.
Figure 6
Figure 6
Correlations between changes in metabolic vs. immune parameters. Heatmap values are Pearson correlation coefficients, where red indicates a positive correlation and green indicates a negative correlation. Asterisks denotes statistically significant correlations (* p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01). HDL-P: HDL-particle, LP–IR: lipoprotein–insulin resistance index, TC: total cholesterol, TG: triglycerides, TRLP: triglyceride-rich lipoproteins, WBC: white blood cells.

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